We sat down with Austin Swallow, the Food For The Hungry Board President! They are getting started early this year by helping families with some pop-up food distributions in our community.
Austin tells us the motivation behind these events and he gives us the details on one happening very soon! He also talks about the upcoming Food For The Hungry Drive happening in December.
To learn more about FFTH click HERE!
Xander got to have a sit down with Coach Mark Richt! Coach Richt is a former college football coach and player that spoke at the Tragedy Into Triumph event last night on MVNU’s campus. Coach tells us about his football career and his testimony on how he came to know Jesus!
Tragedy Into Triumph will happen again tonight and tomorrow with more amazing speakers! Doors open at 6pm and the event starts at 7pm.
For more info on Tragedy Into Triumph click HERE!
Today on The Morning Thing, we focused on Serendipity Day! We looked at it through a Christian lens as we know God works in incredible and surprising ways, and we came up with 8 things each of us can work on to be more open to this kind of God!
Recognizing and being open to a serendipitous God — one who moves in unexpected, surprising, and grace-filled ways — involves cultivating a mindset, a heart posture, and some daily practices that create space for divine presence in the ordinary and the unforeseen.
Here are some of the best ways to open yourself to this:
1. Practice Attentiveness
“Earth’s crammed with heaven, and every common bush afire with God; but only he who sees takes off his shoes.”
— Elizabeth Barrett Browning
2. Let Go of the Need for Control
3. Cultivate Wonder and Curiosity
4. Engage in Reflective Prayer or Journaling
5. Trust in Divine Timing
6. Surround Yourself with Stories of Serendipity
7. Be Willing to Act on Gentle Nudges
8. Hold Theology Loosely, Hold God Tightly
To learn more about Serendipity Day, click HERE!
We got to chat with several members of the Teen Advisory Counsel about their program and the upcoming Color Run! Their members tell us all about the TAC, why they are involved, and they highlight the fun event coming this weekend!
To learn more about the TAC or their Color Run, click HERE!
We got to sit down with Terry Schulz and Sarah Scott from Habitat for Humanity! They tell us all about Habitat’s mission and goals to help in our community.
They also highlight their new Welcome Home Ohio Project which is in the works right now and will help numerous people. There is a lot of work going into right now and it is for a great cause!
To stay connected with their ministry, click HERE!
Congratulations to the the city of Mount Vernon, Ohio, Volunteers of the Year for 2025.
These outstanding volunteers were announced and recognized by Mount Vernon Mayor Matt Starr at August First Friday. They tell us more about what they do in our community and give us some advice on getting involved!
Here is some more information on each of them:
• Paul Acitelli, who died on June 18 of this year, consistently demonstrated an unwavering commitment to helping others, particularly individuals with disabilities. In addition to adopting a family every Christmas through the Salvation Army or Interchurch Social Services of Knox County, he continually raised thousands of dollars to support disabled people in need of housing assistance, utilities or to fund recreational access via pool passes.
• Heather Barbour, the physical education teacher at Twin Oak and Columbia Elementary Schools, has been responsible for bringing many sports programs and activity initiatives to Mount Vernon. She’s done this through her volunteer work with Lifepoint Church, the City’s Recreation Board and more. Bicycling is a priority for her, and she has helped many kids learn how to ride a bike via the All Kids Bike program and as the bike safety coordinator for Mount Vernon’s Safety Town.
• Jeff Williams and Courtney DeCosky, through their Nellie Six Productions, have made a huge impact on the arts scene in Mount Vernon and Knox County. Within just a few short years, they have turned the Summer Front Porch Concert Series into one of the City’s top cultural events of the year. As founding members of the Kokosing Valley Arts Alliance, they have worked to create opportunities and remove barriers for local and regional artists to develop and share their art.
Today, our host shared some great tips on how to take action in your life every single day! Taking action can be struggle but staying consistent is the key. These suggestions are things you can implement today that will make it easier to meet you goals going forward!
Click HERE to check out these great tips!
Today, The Morning Thing hosts shared some fantastic tips to fight burnout! There is no rules when it comes to defeating this beast but these just some suggestions that may help in that fight! They break it down into an acronym of “FIGHT”.
To see the acronym and the tips click HERE!
This morning, our hosts highlighted some of the most incredible children in the Bible. They show how to serve God and their stories are truly an inspiration to all of us!
Here are a few of them:
To see the rest of these amazing kids and learn about their stories, click HERE!
Today, our hosts shared some encouraging promises that God gives us for when we feel overwhelmed! The article shares this wisdom, as well as bible verses to go along with them!
Just a few of the promises:
For the rest of the list, click HERE! Don’t miss out on these heartening promises!
Rise and Shine 